Social Science Planning Team

The Council received a report on the minutes from the Social Science Planning Team’s (SSPT) interim teleconference (which occurred November 9th, 2018), including draft Terms of Reference (TOR) for Council consideration, and approved the Team’s TOR with modifications. The SSPT minutes detail the status of the data gap analysis and discussion of the logistics and agenda for its next May in-person meeting. When the date and location of that meeting is determined, it will be posted on the SSPT webpage. Information was also provided on social science guidance in other Council regions, as previously requested.

At the October 2018 Council meeting, there was a request for staff to aid the Council in identifying a process to determine an individual to broadly represent Tribal organizations on the SSPT. Tracking with the SSPT discussion (as detailed in the minutes), staff recommended the Council clarify its policy on affiliations eligible to be considered for the SSPT and clarify the role it is seeking to fill on the SSPT (i.e. public representation or scientific knowledge). As a result, the Council changed language in the SSPT Terms of Reference (TOR) to clarify that individuals with Tribal-affiliations (defined as being nominated by a Tribe or Alaska Native organization) are considered eligible for membership to this plan team. In the event of a future call for nominations, the Council will seek to more clearly communicate how it intends to weigh affiliation and professional qualifications. In addition, Council intends to consider more broadly its policy for membership on plan teams and committees in a separate policy document in the future.